Addressing Disability Inclusion Through a Jewish Lens

Jewish sacred texts dating back thousands of years address how to treat people with differences, teach students who may need extra support, and recognize the humanity in all individuals. This course explores the types of disabilities that teachers might encounter in their schools. Participants will learn specific strategies to transform classrooms into truly inclusive spaces from a Jewish values perspective. These will include guidance in structuring the classroom and designing activities that serve students of all abilities and actively reduce disability stigma. Participants will also discuss how to communicate effectively with parents.

February 2019 is the 11th annual Jewish Disability Awareness and Inclusion Month, a worldwide unified initiative for Jewish organizations to raise awareness and foster inclusion of people with disabilities and mental health conditions. To that end, we will also identify ways to implicitly and explicitly teach students that inclusion is a Jewish value.